Hillary may delay campaign announcement until July

Originally it was looking like the first part of April would be the start date for the Hillary 2016 campaign. The thinking was that would give the Clintons time to raise money for the entire second quarter of 2015 and come in with a massive total to squash any potential primary challengers. At this point, however, with little to no challenge on the horizon, it appears the campaign announcement may be pushed back all the way to July of this year.

Hillary Clinton, expecting no major challenge for the Democratic nomination, is strongly considering delaying the formal launch of her presidential campaign until July, three months later than originally planned, top Democrats tell POLITICO.

The delay from the original April target will give her more time to develop her message, policy and organization, without the chaos and spotlight of a public campaign.

A Democrat familiar with Clinton’s thinking said: “She doesn’t feel under any pressure, and they see no primary challenge on the horizon. If you have the luxury of time, you take it.”

Advisers said the biggest reason for the delay is simple: She feels no rush.

“She doesn’t want to feel pressured by the press to do something before she’s ready,” one adviser said. “She’s better off as a non-candidate. Why not wait?”

A huge advantage to waiting is that Clinton postpones the time when she goes before the public as a politician rather than as a former secretary of state. Polling by both Democrats and Republicans shows that one of her biggest vulnerabilities is looking political.

I think it is a wise decision so long as there is no one else on the Democratic side who will begin to steal her thunder in the next couple months. Elizabeth Warren continually says she’s not running which leaves Joe Biden. However, Biden has said he “may” challenge Hillary, not that he yet intends to so I’m betting he won’t announce a campaign unless Hillary is looking vulnerable.

If this is the case, the GOP will dominate the presidential news for the next six months until the Hillary announcement resets the race this summer.

Nate Ashworth is the Founder and Editor-In-Chief of Election Central. He's been blogging elections and politics for almost a decade. He started covering the 2008 Presidential Election which turned into a full-time political blog in 2012 and 2016.